Recent Advances of Functional Proteomics in Gastrointestinal Cancers- a Path towards the Identification of Candidate Diagnostic,Prognostic, and Therapeutic Molecular Biomarkers

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancer remains one of the common causes of morbidity and mortality. A high number of cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage, leading to a poor survival rate. This is primarily attributed to the lack of reliable diagnostic biomarkers and limited treatment options. Therefore, more sensitive, specific biomarkers and curative treatments are desirable. Functional proteomics as a research area in the proteomic field aims to elucidate the biological function of unknown proteins and unravel the cellular mechanisms at the molecular level. Phosphoproteomic and glycoproteomic studies have emerged as two efficient functional proteomics approaches used to identify diagnostic biomarkers, therapeutic targets, the molecular basis of disease and mechanisms underlying drug resistance in GI cancers. In this review, we present an overview on how functional proteomics may contribute to the understanding of GI cancers, namely colorectal, gastric, hepatocellular carcinoma and pancreatic cancers. Moreover, we have summarized recent methodological developments in phosphoproteomics and glycoproteomics for GI cancer studies.     

Electrochemical behavior of a Nafion‐membrane‐based solid‐state supercapacitor with a graphene oxide—multiwalled carbon nanotube—polypyrrole nanocomposite

In this study, we sprayed a graphene oxide–multiwalled carbon nanotube (GM) suspension in isopropyl alcohol–water onto a Nafion membrane. The electrodeposition of polypyrrole (PPy) was carried out on Nafion to complete the fabrication of a solid‐state symmetric supercapacitor. Nafion 117 membranes are used as electrolyte separators in the preparation of supercapacitors. The characterization of the symmetric supercapacitor was done by X‐ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The electrochemical properties of the symmetric solid‐state supercapacitor were investigated by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge–discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques in 1M lithium chloride. A specific capacitance of 90.4 mF/cm² (258.3 F/g¹) was obtained for the supercapacitor at a scan rate of 10 mV s^?1. Maximum energy and power densities of 10 W h/kg and 6031 W/kg were obtained for the fabricated supercapacitor. In such a symmetric configuration, the highly interconnection networks of GM–PPy provided good structure for the supercapacitor electrode, and the good interaction between PPy and GM provided fast electron‐ and charge‐transportation paths so that a high capacitance was achieved. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134 , 44926.     

A superabsorbent hydrogel network based on poly((2-dimethylaminoethyl) methacrylate) and sodium alginate obtained by γ-radiation: synthesis and characterization

In this study, the synthesis and characterization of a novel nano-porous superabsorbent hydrogel with high water swelling capacity is described. A nano-porous hydrogel was prepared by employing (2-dimethylaminoethyl) methacrylate (PDMAEMA) as a pH sensitive monomer and sodium alginate (SA) as a water soluble polysaccharide under ??-ray irradiation. The polymerization reaction was performed at room temperature in the absence of chemically toxic crosslinking agent and initiators. The interactive parameters including biopolymer backbone concentration, monomer concentration and ??-irradiation dose were selected as major factors in the synthesis of superabsorbent and three levels for each factor were applied to obtain the highest water swelling according to the central composite design (CCD) method. According to the results of nine different tests which were derived by CCD method, the optimum conditions were determined. The results showed that the hydrogel prepared at concentration of 1.5?g SA, 2.1?mol/L PDMAEMA and at a radiation dose of 5?kGy displayed the highest swelling capacity. In continuation, the effect of salt, pH, and particle size on the swelling behavior of the obtained samples was investigated. We found that the swelling of the optimized sample first increased and then dropped with increases in pH from 2 to 12 and the maximum water absorbency was observed at pH 7. Finally, different techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were applied for the characterization of optimized nano-porous hydrogel.     

Synthesis of hexagonal cobalt hydroxide and cobalt oxide nanorings as promising materials for oxygen evolution and supercapacitive processes

Preparing the low-cost nanomaterials for electrocatalytic processes is still a big challenge. Mesoporous cobalt hydroxide and cobalt oxide nanoparticles were prepared through simple soft chemistry as high-performance materials for durable electrocatalyst for OER and supercapacitive applications. The synthesis method is used to prepare nanoring particles in neither emulsion nor template-directed method. The final nanoparticles display mesoporous hexagonal nanoring morphology. The physio-chemical properties of the as-synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and nitrogen adsorption-desorption techniques. The TEM characterizations prove that NPs retain the topotactical relationship in their structure during the conversion process. The BET measurements prove the mesoporous nature of the nanorings, having good specific surface area and pore volume. Finally, the electrochemical performance toward water splitting and supercapacitor applications were investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) techniques. The Co₃O₄ NPs exhibits better catalytic properties than Co(OH)₂ NPs when applied as electrocatalyst in an alkaline medium for water splitting and supercapacitor measurements. The enhanced electrocatalytic performance attributed to the mesoporous structure along with high pore volume, which provides more active boundary sites for the electrochemical process, resulted in the enhanced exchange of the intermediates and more efficient electron transfer. This synthetic methodology, with the advantages of inexpensive/non-complicated experimental setup and high electrochemical performance, could shed light on the development of non-expensive electrocatalysts for clean energy production and storage.     

Electrosynthesis and physioelectrochemical properties of poly tyramine electroactive film in the presence of the surfactant: Comparable study

We describe in detail the advantages of a novel method of electrochemical preparation of poly tyramine (PT), based on the ability of anionic surfactants to form micelles in aqueous media. We demonstrate that the electropolymerisation process carried out in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) at an oxidation potential lower than in an aqueous media yields better organized PT films. Theoretical calculations for tyramine (Ty) polymerization were carried out at density functional theory (DFT) level using the 6-31G(d,p) basis set. The improved physicochemical and structural properties of PT obtained in these conditions related to the electrocatalytic effect of SDS and change fractal dimension of the film. With respect to Ni-PT/G, Ni-SDS-PT/G electrode shows a higher catalytic performance for the electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol.     

Study on kinetics of polymerization of dimer fatty acids with ethylenediamine in the presence of catalyst

A generally applicable stoichiometric and kinetic model was developed for the polymerization of dimer fatty acids with ethylenediamine in the presence of phosphoric acid as catalyst. Rate equation used is based on second order and the temperatures are between 405 and 475 K with mixing rate of 75 rpm. The parameters of the rate equations are determined using nonlinear regression analysis. Comparison of the model predictions with the experimental data show that the approach is useful in predicting the polymerization kinetic. Equilibrium constant changes from 2.432 to 17.765. Frequency factor and activation energy for forward rate constant are 362306102.681 kg mol⁻¹ min⁻¹ and 83.24 kJ mol⁻¹, respectively. The equilibrium constant is independent of temperature with frequency factor and activation energy values of 17317.97 and 28.65 kJ mol⁻¹, respectively.     

A time–frequency based approach for generalized phase synchrony assessment in nonstationary multivariate signals

This paper proposes a new approach to estimate the phase synchrony among nonstationary multivariate signals using the linear relationships between their instantaneous frequency (IF) laws. For cases where nonstationary signals are multi-component, a decomposition method like multi-channel empirical mode decomposition (MEMD) is used to simultaneously decompose the multi-channel signals into their intrinsic mode functions (IMFs). We then apply the Johansen method on the IF laws to assess the phase synchrony within multivariate nonstationary signals. The proposed approach is validated first using multi-channel synthetic signals. The method is then used for quantifying the inter-hemispheric EEG asynchrony during ictal and inter-ictal periods using a newborn EEG seizure/non-seizure database of five subjects. For this application, pair-wise phase synchrony measures may not be able to account for phase interactions between multiple channels. Furthermore, the classical definition of phase synchrony, which is based on the rational relationships between phases, may not reveal the hidden phase interdependencies caused by irrational long-run relationships. We evaluate the performance of the proposed method using the differentiation of unwrapped phase as well as other IF estimation techniques. The results obtained on newborn EEG signals confirm that the generalized phase synchrony within EEG channels increases significantly during ictal periods. A statistically consistent phase coupling is also observed within the non-seizure segments supporting the concept of constant inter-hemispheric connectivity in the newborn brain during inter-ictal periods.     

Record value based on intuitionistic fuzzy random variables

This paper extends some basic concepts associated to record value based on intuitionistic fuzzy random variables. In this approach, αβ-values of intuituinistic fuzzy numbers are employed to construct intuitionistic fuzzy cumulative distribution function and its common estimator, an extended entropy and its estimator, intuitionistic fuzzy (upper) record value and its common estimator. Main property of the proposed concepts include large sample properties which are investigated in the space of intuitionistic fuzzy numbers. Some numerical examples are also illustrated to clarify the concepts and methods.